Central Illinois — and much of the Midwest — was blanketed by a snowstorm Sunday, extending winter break and leaving up to 13 inches of snow in the Springfield area.

If you’re looking for something to do after school this week, here are some options. Just be extra careful because the freezing temperatures are very dangerous. Bundle up with multiple layers — or, better yet, wait until later in the week when temperatures are supposed to warm up a bit.

Snow ice cream

This idea is from familycrafts.about.com.

1 cup of milk

1/2 teaspoon of vanilla

1/2 cup of sugar

4-5 cups of clean snow

Collect fresh, clean snow. Scoop it up but do not pack it.

Put the snow in your freezer while you prepare the other ingredients.

Mix the milk, vanilla and sugar together. “Stir the mixture until the sugar is dissolved,” according to the Family Crafts site. Slowly add the snow to the mixture.

Stir constantly until the mixture is as thick as ice cream. “Now, it is ready to eat and enjoy,” the site said.

Build an igloo

This idea is from YodelMagazine.com.

Large amount of snow

Shovel

Saw

Find an area that’s covered with flat, compacted snow. Create a circle in the snow to form the footprint of your igloo. Stick with 10 feet or less in diameter or the igloo will be too big.

Use the saw (or have an adult use it) to cut rectangular blocks of snow from the ground. These should be about 10 inches thick. “If the top layer of snow is too soft, hard snow can usually be found underneath,” Yodel’s site explained.

These large snow bricks are used at the base of the igloo. Bricks should get smaller as you get closer to the top of the structure.

“Stack your snow bricks one on top of the other in spiral layers,” according to Yodel. You have to slant the edges of the bricks in a bit.

“After placing all your bricks, pack any gaps with snow, keeping the interior wall smooth so moisture runs down the side of the wall rather than dripping from the ceiling,” the site explains.

Build a door for you to get in an out of. Once inside, use a stick or ski pole to poke air holes all the way through the snow bricks.

Snow candy

This recipe is from www.wikihow.com.

1 cup of real maple syrup

1/4 cup of salted butter

Page 2 of 2 - Snow (or vanilla ice cream or shaved ice)

Candy is easiest to make if you catch fresh snow while it falls. But, that might not be an option. So, if you can’t catch falling snow, just pack some that’s already on the ground.

Put a large container with snow in the freezer.

You might want to ask a parent to help with this next step. “Heat the syrup and butter in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat,” Wiki explained. Bring to a boil, but stir so it does not boil over.

Leave the mixture for 6 to 7 minutes.

Remove it from the heat. Allow it to cool for 2 minutes before pouring the maple syrup and butter over the snow (or ice cream or shaved ice).

Build a snowman

These instructions are from www.wikihow.com.

Find a flat area for your snowman. Make sure the spot has a nice patch of snow.

Pack a handful of snow tightly, shaping it into a sphere.

Put this snowball on the ground and roll it along so it can pick up more snow, letting it grow larger. Keep rolling until the snowball is the size you’d like your snowman’s base to be.

Make two more snowballs, each a bit smaller than the previous spheres. Then, stack the three snowballs with the largest on the ground.

Smooth out the sides.

Once the snowballs are in place, pack more snow between the layers to make sure they stick together.

You can stabilize your snowman by putting a long, skinny stick straight down through the top of the snowman’s head and into the body. Then, use more snow to cover the hole left by the stick.

Use a carrot for a nose, buttons or pebbles for eyes and a row of pebbles or coal for a mouth.

Use sticks for arms and then, if you can bear to part with one in temperatures this cold, give your snowman a hat.